She's sought the nation's highest office twice before, losing to Barack Obama and Donald Trump — odds are she thinks a third time will do it

Many people will laugh and scoff at me for selecting so early my Democratic presidential candidate in 2020. It was just apparent to me as I announced my pick on Clint Bellow’s radio show from Omaha on Wednesday, March 7, 2018.

The victim candidate actually made her first announcement March 8, 2018. The headline of the statement said, “I deserve to be president.” It was said by Hillary Clinton.

The Media Research Center has given four reasons she should be the nominee. Their number three-reason was: Clinton won the popular vote convincingly in 2016, and she has earned the right to be considered the presumptive nominee in 2020.

Ed Kline, writing in Newsmax, said, “Hillary Clinton intends to keep her campaign organization together for the next two years and run again for president in 2020.”

“She’s convinced that, sooner [rather] than later, the voters will come to their senses and realize they made a horrible mistake by putting [Donald J.] Trump in the White House,” a source close to Hillary told Ed Klein Confidential. “She’s sure the voters will beg her to get in the race because she was a victim of Trump and Russian collusion, and she says, ‘I’m going to run again in 2020.'”

Matt Latimer, writing for Politico Magazine, quoted Clinton’s concession speech to Trump last November. Absent in her remarks was any indication, as one might have expected, that she was going gently into that good night, handing the baton to a new generation or even to a new leader. Instead, Clinton talked more about the future — explicitly including herself in that future — than she did about the past.

Fox News’ Tucker Carlson interviewed Philippe Reines, a former Clinton adviser, about her warning Trump to do something about the Russians. Clinton took the stage at a diversity conference in San Francisco last Tuesday, making her most political comments since losing the 2016 presidential election.

“There is no place I’d rather be than here with you,” Clinton said, before adding, “Other than the White House.” They just didn’t give up on Jan. 18, 2017; Newsweek ran an article on how Hillary could still win.

All of these items, coupled with the Mueller investigation, are keeping Clinton in the spotlight as the victim. She was cheated, it wasn’t her fault — and the Russians were in collusion with Trump to steal the election from Clinton.

I think the Mueller investigation will continue into the 2020 campaign. In the coming two-and-a-half years, Clinton will have sucked all the air out of the other candidates who are considering running for the top spot. Every story about the Russians and their interference with the 2016 election will be either, directly or indirectly, a story for Clinton.

Remember that the Democrats are the party of victims, and Clinton is the perfect victim. She says that her legitimate campaign was attacked by white, non-college educated males, anti-gay, anti-women, anti-transsexuals, anti-abortion, and Evangelical Christians, and don’t forget the Russians and Trump.

In looking at the groups that she says have attacked her, one would think she is a world-class victim and any candidate trying to run against her stands no chance. You may ask with so much time until the 2020 presidential election, what could make my projection wrong?

I see two things that could derail her third-time try. First is health: If she doesn’t have any health issues, she is 70, which would make her 81 when and if she is elected and finishes a second term. She had some health issues in the last campaign and was not an aggressive contender.

Our victim is going to run, and nobody other than herself can stop her.

The second issue is the orange jumpsuit that she could be fitted with, depending on the outcome of the many ongoing investigations being conducted by Congress, and/or the Department of Justice and the FBI. If the Republicans gain more control of the House and the Senate, as I think will happen, then look for the Republicans to be more aggressive in pressing for a deeper investigation.

Our victim is going to run, and nobody other than herself can stop her. In her mind and the minds of her supporters, she should be president. Here is a key to watch: Every once in a while, go to www.clintonfoundation.org and see if you notice any uptick in donations.

Remember that in baseball and politics, three strikes and you are out.

Dan Perkins is an author of thrillers and children’s books and can be heard on more than 1,400 radio stations nationwide. He is also the founder of the veterans organization Songs and Stories for Soldiers Inc.